100 EARLY DAY STORIES. 



in my direction, and then they did not get up or seem to be 

 at all alarmed. They no doubt saw the grass move, but could 

 not tell what was there. I knew there was no danger of 

 their running away until they began to show symptoms of 

 alarm. Such a time is very interesting and exciting. It is 

 worth a week of hard hunting to come to such a moment. 

 You are almost sure of a good shot and of getting the game. 

 Had there been a puff of wind in the direction toward the 

 elk they would have scented the enemy at once, but even 

 then there was a chance for a good shot before they could 

 get fairly started to run. But they were not in the least 

 alarmed — they saw something moving in the grass, but did 

 not know what it was. Finally they got up very deliberately 

 and the one nearest stood looking, breast toward me. It 

 takes but an instant to draw a bead at such a time — the gun 

 cracked, the elk turned, gave one quick strong bound and 

 stopped — his frame began to tremble, he tried to run, but 

 fell to the ground. The shot had struck low down in the 

 center of the breast, and had passed clear through the vitals. 

 I saw only three or four of the herd, but there was a great 

 trampling and a clatter of hoofs as they got under way. I 

 sent a shot after one of the others which crippled it badly, 

 and probably inflicted a mortal wound, but I was unable 

 in the rough ground and without a dog, to find it. This 

 was the largest elk I ever killed, and one of the fattest. At 

 that time I was working for the land department of the 

 B. & M. R. R. Co., and the horns, a very long, heavy, twelve 

 point pair, were sent by the company to England to be 

 mounted in one of their land offices in the old country. 



It is not always easy to get game even where it is 

 abundant. I have hunted hard all day in a good black-tail 

 country when the ground was free from snow, and where 

 game signs were plentiful, without seeing a single deer. 

 When there is a tracking snow of course it is different, for 

 then one can follow the tracks and get sight of the game. 



